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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23408512">Operation: Love Birds</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KateCake/pseuds/KateCake'>KateCake</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, Light-Hearted, Sonic is not an asshole in this one! I don't like that trope, maybe some minor angst, rouge is catty but in a good way, set before forces/forces doesn't exist, shadow is awkward at times</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 07:40:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,847</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23408512</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KateCake/pseuds/KateCake</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Rouge cannot believe her eyes. Shadow the, sulky, moody, stoic, hedgehog has a crush! An actual crush! And on such a cute ray of sunshine! </p><p>Rouge makes it her mission to set the two up. Even if Shadow tries to kill her. Maybe she can get Omega to help too.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Amy Rose/Shadow the Hedgehog, E-123 Omega &amp; Rouge the Bat &amp; Shadow the Hedgehog, Rouge the Bat &amp; Shadow the Hedgehog</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>95</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>236</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So I may have gotten carried away with this beginning mission ^^;</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rouge takes a moment to catch her breath. She'd been too lax getting to her vantage point. She'd nearly tripped an alarm and had to take care of one of the robot guards. She hoped they didn't ping their location regularly because then the mission would truly be compromised.</p><p>She gets into position and activates her comm unit. "TL to Team: I'm in position," she says quietly. "Status."</p><p>Omega's halting words soon reply. "<em>In position</em>."</p><p>"<em>Same</em>."</p><p>Rouge grins. Everything's going without a hitch. At this rate, they should be home within eighteen hours. She glances at the metal scraps of the robot she destroyed. She brought them with her in case it's route overlapped with another robot's, but that still wouldn't matter if it got pinged.</p><p>She purses her lips as she pulls out a pair of binoculars. This is an old base, it shouldn't have any of the newer models that <em>do</em> ping their statuses regularly.</p><p>She takes a deep breath as she activates her comm again. "Alright, stay alert. I had to take out a guard on my way up," she reluctantly explains. "It's unlikely to ping, but be ready in case it does."</p><p>"<em>Yeah, whatever</em>," Shadow replies. Rouge can practically hear him rolling his eyes.</p><p>After a short pause, Omega replies. "<em>Understood</em>."</p><p>She scans the surrounding area. The patrol looks light, but she can't afford to underestimate it. She spots Shadow's and Omega's hiding spots but doesn't see them. Good. They're well hidden.</p><p>"Hold positions," she continues. "It shouldn't be more than a few hours to get their patrol fully catalogued."</p><p>Shadow merely grunts in respond while Omega gives another affirmative. With that done, Rouge settles back to watch.</p><p>--</p><p>It's been nearly three hours and Rouge is cursing herself for not at least bringing a nail file with her. The mission had seemed simple, if a bit long, but she didn't expect it to be this <em>boring</em>. The dang robots repeat their patrol routes every seventeen minutes. That all but confirmes that this is an outside occupation of an Eggman base. Well, that and the few mobian driven trucks that had entered and left the facility.</p><p>"Alright guys, this is a non-ronotnik base," Rouge sighs into her comm unit. "Shadow, head to the north north-east road and tail the next truck that drives out. Omega, that'll be your weapons free ten-counter signal. Once the commotion starts, I'll go in and gather further intel."</p><p>"<em>Ten minute signal delay set</em>," Omega replies.</p><p>"<em>En route</em>."</p><p>Rouge stands and stretches her legs and wings. Sitting in one position for too long always leaves her muscles feeling tight.</p><p>She's about to pocket her binoculars when a small blur catches her eye. Quickly crouching back down to stay hidden, she scans her surroundings. She's about to move again when she sees the movement again. Using her binoculars, she focuses on the movement.</p><p>Keeping her eye on the movement, she activates the comm link. "Be careful. The Kid's here which means Big Blue's nearby. Keep your eyes peeled for him," she instructs. "For now, our tasks still hold."</p><p>"<em>This isn't even an Eggman base,</em>" Shadow gripes. "<em>Why are they here?</em>"</p><p>Before Rouge can reply, Omega starts speaking. "<em>Hypothesis: they are likely here for the same reason we are</em>," he says. "<em>An old abandoned </em><em>Eggman</em><em> base becoming active after being abandoned for two years is suspicious</em>."</p><p>"<em>You don't say</em>," Shadow replies drily.</p><p>Rouge ignores them as she continues to follow Tails with her binoculars. "Shadow, hold position!" She snaps when she realizes he's heading towards the road Shadow's supposed to wait at.</p><p>"<em>Heard</em>."</p><p>Tails lands in the middle of the road much to Rouge's annoyance. She has no idea how far Shadow is from their position.</p><p>"Do you have eyes on the Kid?" She asks.</p><p>"<em>Negative</em>."</p><p>"Omega?"</p><p>"<em>Negative</em>."</p><p>"Shadow, ping your comms. Omega, rendez-vous with Shadow," she orders.</p><p>"<em>Mobilizing</em>."</p><p>Rouge frowns as she watches Tails just stand around. He stands there long enough to tempt her to her old plan. "Shadow, Omega, retrace to Omega's previous position," she hesitantly instructs.</p><p>"<em>Why have Omega come to me in the first place, then?</em>" Shadow asks.</p><p>"I'm playing it by ear okay!" Rouge snaps. "And no need to stay hidden, just don't purposely–Stop! Big Blue spotted!"</p><p>"<em>Great</em>," Shadow growls irritably, "<em>so we really are stuck cleaning up </em><em>his</em><em> mess</em>."</p><p>"<em>Unacceptable!</em>" Omega adds. "<em>I should be the one to eliminate Eggman's Robots!</em>"</p><p>Shadow's snort is audible over the comm link.</p><p>Rouge frowns, this is not the time for Omega to get pissy. "Omega, remember the mission," she says tersely.</p><p>Taking a calming breath, she turns her attention back to Sonic and Tails. "Kid's taken flight again; Big Blue's charging up," she says. "I think he plans to hit the base from the north north-east road while the Kid takes my job."</p><p>"<em>So what's the plan?</em>" Shadow asks.</p><p>"We're revising the first plan. You're still trailing the first truck that crosses those gates," she instructs. The sound of alarms jars her attention for a moment. "Omega, get in there and make sure Blue Boy doesn't destroy every tuck that tries to escape."</p><p>Rouge doesn't waste any more time. She runs to the ledge and jumps.</p><p>"<em>Inquiry</em>,"</p><p>"Yes, you can destroy the robots!" She yells over the sound of the alarms. Not ten seconds later does a small explosion ring out.</p><p>Rouge snorts at the alarmed shouts of Sonic and Tails. She takes advantage of the heightened alert of the robots to draw their attention. Their shots are easy to evade. She almost forgot how laughable these older models were.</p><p>She smirks when she sees the base's anti-air defenses engage. She flaps her wings to get extra speed and beelines to Tails. "Hi, honey!" She calls grabbing his ankle. "I'm sure you won't mind taking care of things out here for me."</p><p>Tails barely gets a sound in before Rouge folds her wings and yanks his leg down. He let's out a startled and disoriented scream as he's spun through the air and hurled towards one of the turrets.</p><p>Rouge quickly extends her wings to reorient herself. She glanced over at Tails who scrambles out of the way as one of the ground robots shoot at him. She smirks again as the other turrets lock onto him.</p><p>That should keep all the defenses trained on him. It's not like he can't handle it after all; he wouldn't trail after Sonic like he does if he couldn't.</p><p>Rouge turns her attention back to the building and looks for a way in. She spots a large window on the lower level. She takes a deep breath and readies herself. She starts her dive towards the window, and half way down, she folds her wings only to use them to push herself down. She grits her teeth at the twinge of pain such an unnatural movement causes.</p><p>Her spiked heel hits the window and shatters it instantly. She shields her face from the glass but still feels the sting of cuts on her shoulders and ears.</p><p>She shakes off the impact and quickly disposes of the opposition.</p><p>She runs through the halls in search of the central control room. She occasionally spots other mobians duck into side rooms or run in the opposite direction.</p><p>A loud crash behind her causes her to stumble. Rouge quickly whirls around and reflexively flares her wings.</p><p>She blinks in surprise at the sight of Amy Rose.</p><p>"Hey, Rouge," Amy greets with a friendly smile.</p><p>"What are you doing here?" Rouge blurts.</p><p>Amy hefts her hammer onto her shoulder with a prideful grin. "Thought you could use some help."</p><p>Rouge relaxes slightly and eyes the pink hedgehog. "Sorry, hun, but I don't think you can help," she dismissed. She quickly glances around herself before picking a hallway. "Unless, of course, you know where the control room is," she tosses over her shoulder.</p><p>She's barely taken a step when Amy's words knock her off balance. "I don't know <em>that</em>," she starts off innocently, "but I do know where the guy in charge is."</p><p>Rouge is dumbstruck as she looks at Amy's faux innocent look. "What," she says dumbly.</p><p>Amy's smile broadens. "Come on, I'll show you!" She motions for Rouge to follow her.</p><p>--</p><p>Rouge stares dumbstruck at the tied up bison mobian. He'd clearly been beat up before he was captured. She turns back to Amy and notices she's scuffed up as well.</p><p>Amy gives her a sheepish smile. "I figured since this wasn't Eggman's doing, I could hand him over to the cops," she explained nervously.</p><p>"Amy," Rouge says placing a hand on the her shoulder. "You've just made my job a whole lot easier. Thank you."</p><p>Amy's whole face seems to light up. "Really?!"</p><p>Rouge nods.</p><p>Her comm crackles drawing her attention from the energetic girl.</p><p>"<em>Sonic has left the designated area,</em>" Omega alerts.</p><p>"<em>Dammit, Omega!</em>" Shadow snaps. "<em>You were supposed to keep him occupied!</em>"</p><p>"<em>This unit would like to remind Agent Shadow that it has limited mobility and maneuverability.</em>"</p><p>Rouge snorts earning her an odd look from Amy. She points to her ear were the earpiece is carefully tucked out of view.</p><p>"Oh, you're here on G.U.N business!" Amy says.</p><p>Rouge presses a button on her wristwatch that pings her location. "Why don't you boys stop arguing and come meet me inside the base."</p><p>"<em>But what about the–,</em>"</p><p>"It's fine," Rouge dismisses. "I've discovered something far more useful with the help of a certain Pink Rose."</p><p>"<em>New directive received.</em>"</p><p>There's a slight pause before Shadow's curious voice says, "<em>Amy Rose is there?</em>"</p><p>"And she brought us a gift!" Rouge replies happily. "So hurry up."</p><p>She turns back to Amy. "I hope you don't mind waiting here for the boys," she says. "I still have a control room to find."</p><p>"Oh, uhm. Sure," Amy says awkwardly as she watches Rouge leave the small room.</p><p>--</p><p>Amy glances around the room. She picked it to store the bad guy in because of how plain it was, but now she's cursing it's lack of places to sit. With a sigh. She slides down the wall to sit on the floor.</p><p>She's glad that Rouge is there on G.U.N business though. She'd been worried about how she was going to get the bad guy to the authorities and explain exactly how he got like that. Now that Rouge was here, she didn't have to worry about that!</p><p>The wall beside her explodes causing her to shriek and jump to her feat. She hefts her hammer only to sigh in relief when she sees that it's just Omega.</p><p>"Omega! You could have seriously hurt me!" She huffs.</p><p>"Not possible," Omega replies plainly as a black blur rushes into the room. "I calculated my attack before execution to prevent excessive harm of mobians inside."</p><p>Shadow looks Amy up and down with a critical look in his eyes.</p><p>Amy tries not to shift under the totally not intimidating gaze of Team Dark's less than friendly members... Okay maybe it's a little intimidating.</p><p>"Omega, be more careful around Amy Rose," Shadow instructs turning away from her. "It's one thing if you accidentally hurt me and Rouge or even dumbass and the Kid. She's more civilian than them–,"</p><p>Amy crosses her arms definitely "Hey! I can handle myself!" She snaps angrily.</p><p>Shadow's raised eyebrow is the only indication he heard her as he continues without pausing. "And she doesn't actively work against us."</p><p>Amy let's out a surprised "oh" as her arms drop back down to her sides.</p><p>"Understood," Omega says turning to fully face Amy. "Agent Rouge said you had a gift of use to our mission."</p><p>"Oh right!" She brightens up considerably now that she has a chance to show just how capable she it.</p><p>She moves around Omega and Shadow to the tied up bison. She cringes as she notices him starting to stir. "Tada!" She says with an exaggerated flourish. "I present to you, the baddie leader!"</p><p>Shadow walks over to the two of them and examines the tied up man. He let's out a low thoughtful hum. "Omega, recalibrate your attacks when this is over. You almost knocked him out."</p><p>"Actually that was me," Amy interjects, "and he's just waking up."</p><p>As if to prove her point, the bison snorts angrily. "You damn bitch!" He roars. "When I get–,"</p><p>Amy yelps as Shadow's foot connects with the bison's temple knocking him back out. "Omega, grab the prisoner and contact our field ops-oh for extraction coordinates."</p><p>"Understood," Omega says. He grabs the unconscious bison and leaves from the same way he came.</p><p>Amy shifts awkwardly. With all that said and done, she doesn't know what to do next. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around?" She says awkwardly.</p><p>Shadow merely grunts and... walks out the hole Omega made...</p><p>She cringes as she follows. She'd said her goodbye only to end up going the same way as him.</p><p>She's instantly relieved when she hears Sonic's voice. Even if he does sound really angry.</p><p>"Shadow! I should have known this was your doing!" Sonic accuses rushing at them.</p><p>Shadow simply steps out of the way. "For once, I didn't actually do anything this mission."</p><p>"Yeah?" Sonic challenges. "Is that why you let Amy get hurt?"</p><p>"Hey!" Amy shouts.</p><p>Shadow glances back at her. "She was like that when I found her."</p><p>Sonic narrows his eyes at Shadow before dashing to her. "Amy what are you still doing here?" He asks sounding equal parts worried and exasperated. "It's dangerous!"</p><p>She can't help the smile that makes its way onto her face. "Aw, I didn't mean to make you worry so much," she says bashfully.</p><p>"You don't give her enough credit," Shadow cuts in drily.</p><p>Sonic's look of exasperation turns to irritation as he looks away from Amy. Not that she can blame him, even she feels a little annoyed at the interruption.</p><p>"What would you know," Sonic challenges with a smirk. "Like you said, you didn't even do anything."</p><p>Shadow rolls his eyes and crosses his arms. "That's because Rose snuck in undetected and captured the one in charge by the time any of us got into the base."</p><p>Amy guesses one of his teammates contacts him by his sudden shift in focus. His attention briefly returns to her and he says. "Rouge appreciates your aid on the mission." With that, he disappears in a flash of green.</p><p>"Hey, I'm not done with you!" Sonic dashes at him but barely misses before he disappears. Sonic sighs and returns to Amy's side. He holds out a hand to her. "Come on, let's get out of his dangerous place."</p><p>Amy squeals and grabs his hand. She's instantly hoisted into his arms as he takes off running.</p><p>After a few short minutes, Sonic says, "You really should be more careful."</p><p>"It wasn't even an Eggman base," she says rolling her eyes.</p><p>"I'm talking about Shadow and the rest of Team Dark. They're dangerous."</p><p>"So are we!" She counters.</p><p>"That's not what I mean," Sonic shakes his head. "They do shady stuff and they're willing to hurt others to get what they want."</p><p>Amy frowns thinking back to how Shadow told Omega to be more careful.</p><p>She knows Sonic and Shadow have some stupid rivalry going on, but she knows for a fact Sonic didn't talk about Knuckles like this before they became friends.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Y'know, I wasn't sure what kind of reaction I was expecting when I posted this, but I'm blown away by all your kind words and feedback! &lt;3</p><p>I promise I won't let y'all down!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rouge smiles when Shadow shows up in a flash of green. "Well, you certainly took your sweet time."</p><p>Shadow stretches his arms in front of himself. "A nuisance almost ran into me."</p><p>"Well I'm sure our dear Amy Rose provided a suitable distraction for you," she snorts.</p><p>He doesn't bother replying as he grabs her and warps them to the rendezvous point. Omega's already there with the unconscious bison in his hands. She smiles excitedly.</p><p>Shadow raises an eyebrow at her but she simply shakes her head. </p><p>Rouge has barely decided to take a seat when the sound of a helicopter reaches her ears. She sighs and readies herself for its arrival. She'd just sat down too.</p><p>"Why's the platoon commander here?" Shadow hisses quietly.</p><p>Rouge throws a smirk over her shoulder at him. "Because, that little prisoner Amy Rose gave us is none other than Jax Wilder."</p><p>"Are you sure?" Shadow asks sharply.</p><p>She doesn't answer him as the helicopter lands. The platoon commander, a short athletic mouse, surveys them impassively. Her eyes narrow on the unconscious bison still in Omega's grasp. "Good work D-4," she tells them. She turns on her heal and heads back to the cockpit. "E one-twenty-three, secure the prisoner."</p><p>Omega doesn't reply as he and the others go around back.</p><p>Rouge and Shadow take their seats as Omega straps Jax onto the floor. She winces with how one of the straps creek from how tightly it's pulled. Turning her attention back to Shadow, she sees he's already closed his eyes and settled in for a nap.</p><p>She sighs and settles in for the ride as well.</p><p>Maybe she'll take Amy out shopping as thanks for the help.</p><p>--</p><p>Rouge looks herself over in the mirror as she assesses her outfit. It's tamer than some of her other outfits, but she's also not sure if she'll still accidentally come off as a threat to Amy.</p><p>She shakes her head. No. Amy's not one to think like that.</p><p>Grabbing her purse, she beelines straight for the garage. "Oh, Shadow!" She calls swinging the door wide open. "Are you ready to go?"</p><p>Shadow clearly wasn't expecting her if his startled curses are anything to go by.</p><p>"Sorry, hun," she replies absently.</p><p>He sets his tools down and eyes her suspiciously. "What are you talking about?"</p><p>She rolls her eyes at him. "Well, shopping obv–,"</p><p>"<em>Pass</em>," he interrupts flatly.</p><p>"You didn't even let me finish!"</p><p>This time, Shadow rolls his eyes. He makes an exaggerated hand motion prompting her on.</p><p>"Obviously we're going shopping," she says again. "And since I know you hate it so much, I decided to make it worth your while! I promise you'll like it!"</p><p>He eyes her skeptically.</p><p>"Oh, come on!" She stamps her foot. "It's more of a show than tell sort of thing!"</p><p>"If I don't like it?"</p><p>"Your choice of payback."</p><p>Shadow looks surprised for a second before its quickly replaced by his usual scowl. "Now I'm intrigued," he smirks. "I'll get my jacket."</p><p>Rouge moves out of his way as he enters the house. After a few seconds a thought strikes her. "Wear the matching fingerless gloves!" She calls out.</p><p>--</p><p>Rouge hums excitedly as she drags Shadow into Sunset City Grand Mall. Under the florescent lights, his leather jacket looks obviously worn down, but it fits his style.</p><p>Oh she can't wait to meet up with Amy!</p><p>"We just got here," Shadow gripes as they make their way to the food court.</p><p>She abruptly let's go of him, causing them both to stumble, as she rushes towards a pink and purple shape. "Amy you look so cute!" She gushes hugging the girl tightly.</p><p>Amy let's out a wheezing laugh as she's squeezed. "I feel a little plain compared to you," she says eyeing Rouge.</p><p>Rouge can't help but flutter her wings slightly in pride. It's not her usual outing outfit, less risky and all, but it does show off her curves like she likes. Besides, a deep red off-shoulder shirt and ripped black skinny jeans always looks good.</p><p>Amy on the other hand, has a dark lavender romper. Despite its deep v-neck and short length, she still makes it look tasteful. The wrap style and sheer half length  sleeves show off her lean form too. And the color compliments her fur nicely.</p><p>"Nonsense!" Rouge waves her worries off. "You look gorgeous!" Now's the time for the first test. "Doesn't she, Shadow?"</p><p>Amy jumps at his name and follows her gaze.</p><p>She nearly missed how Amy fidgets in place. Shadow, on the other hand, is rooted in place. He's not tense but he does seem to be stiffer than usual.</p><p>Rouge has to fight off her bubbling laughter. He looks like a poor deer fauna caught in headlights.</p><p>Amy, the kind soul, is the one to break the silence. "Hey, Shadow," she says sounding a little out of place. "I, uh, like your leather jacket."</p><p>That seems snap Shadow out of whatever stint he's in. He acts as casual as he can as he approaches the two girls. The only thing giving him away is the nervous twitch of his ears and tail. "Rouge made me get it," he replies gruffly.</p><p>"Oh, please," Rouge rolls her eyes. "I make you get a lot of things. Just admit you like it."</p><p>Shadow simply crosses his arms with a huff.</p><p>"I think it suits you," Amy offers with a friendly smile.</p><p>Rouge silently let's out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Amy's nice to just about everyone, but Rouge had still worried that the other girl would be uncomfortable with Shadow there. It seems her worries were for naught, though. Amy seems to have gotten over her initial shock.</p><p>"So, are we ready to shop?" Rouge asks grabbing both Amy's and Shadow's arms.</p><p>--</p><p>"Wow," Amy breaths as they reach the middle. "I always knew this mall was huge, but I never realized just how big it was!"</p><p>Rouge looks surprised. "<em>You've never been here?</em>"</p><p>Amy gives her a sheepish smile. "I'm usually busy when I'm around Sunset City, and I don't really live near by so I can't just go whenever I want."</p><p>She tries not to grimace. The whole point of going shopping with Amy was to thank her, not make her go out of her way. "I'm sorry, hun. Next time I'll chose somewhere closer to you."</p><p>"Oh no! That's not it," Amy laughs with a genuine smile. "I was like two towns over with Cream and her mom. I couldn't just <em>not</em> tell them that Big and the forest were okay now."</p><p>It's times like these that Rouge really appreciates Shadow. He knows how to connect the dots quicker than she does.</p><p>"That's why you were out there in the first place, isn't it," Shadow comments.</p><p>"Yep!" Amy answers brightly. "Big said some of the robots looked funny so he called me and Cream to check it out, but Miss Vanilla said no so I went alone. When I saw the Eggman base, I called Sonic and Tails. I figured they'd want to trash the place."</p><p>Shadow huffs irritably, his ears flicking in annoyance. "And he had the nerve to say you weren't needed."</p><p>Rouge grimaces at Amy's slight frown.</p><p>"Hey don't be like that," Amy chides. "He was just worried about me."</p><p>Rouge elbows Shadow before this can devolve into an argument. Shadow grunts but drops it. She doesn't miss how his ears flatten back slightly.</p><p>She guides them to the escalator. "So, Amy," she says, desperately trying to redirect the conversation. "Anything in particular you wanna get?"</p><p>"Well, I have been wanting to get a few more summer outfits."</p><p>"Perfect!" As soon as they reach the top of the escalator, Rouge grabs Amy and starts dragging her to one of her favorite store. "I know just the place!"</p><p>Amy let's out a quiet "<em>wow,</em>" as they come upon the City Ensemble store. The entire storefront is glass letting shoppers see into their large store. "Wait," she says looking at a staircase off to one side, "there's a downstairs <em>and</em> an upstairs?!"</p><p>"The downstairs is guy stuff and upstairs is all home decor," Rouge explains.</p><p>"Wow," Amy says again as she looks around. "I guess you'll be heading downstairs then, Shadow?" She asks him.</p><p>Laughing, Rouge answers instead, "Goodness no," she places a hand on his shoulder. "He's just here to carry our bags."</p><p>Shadow roughly pulls away from her grasp and crosses his arms.</p><p>"Don't worry, you don't have to carry my bags!" Amy says quickly.</p><p>Shadow doesn't react, but Rouge sees the twitch of curiosity from his ears.</p><p>"A lady should never have to carry her own bags," Rouge says guiding Amy towards the blouses.</p><p>Amy eyes her a little defensively. "Well, <em>this lady</em>, carries a big hammer," she says raising one of her arms to show off the built up muscle. "I can handle my own bags."</p><p>"But-,"</p><p>"Face it, Rouge," Shadow says with a hint of smugness in his voice. "Not everyone is as lazy as you."</p><p>Rouge isn't sure whether to be offended by his words or happy that he seems to be enjoying himself. "It's not laziness, it's efficiency!" She scoffs. "I don't wanna get tired before I finish shopping!"</p><p>Shadow raises an eyebrow at her while Amy tries to cover her giggle.</p><p>Rouge feels a little offended but she let's it go. <em>Only</em> because Shadow and Amy seem to be getting along. "I don't need this from either of you," she huffs. "I'm going to go get us a changing room. Amy, start choosing what you want to try on."</p><p>Rouge walks away to the sound of Amy's uncertain voice. "I think that was too far. Maybe we should apologize."</p><p>She barely hears Shadow start to respond– which surprises her– before the general noise of the store drowns out his words. Well at least so far everything's going smoothly!</p><p>The lady running the dressing room greets Rouge with a smile. "How many items?" She asks.</p><p>Rouge eyes her. Incredibly tall, avian, very skinny, obviously tired. "I wanna reserve a room for me and my friend while we're here," she says.</p><p>The tall lady blinks in confusion. "I'm sorry, we don't–,"</p><p>Rouge pulls out a hundred ring note and offers it to the tall bird. "You guys get bonuses when customers buy a lot and name you, right," she states rather than asks. "Well, if you get me that room I will absolutely name you as a major help!"</p><p>The lady eyes Rouge nervously before quickly looking around. "This way please," she says picking up a small oval whiteboard.</p><p>Rouge smirks as they make their way to the far end of all the changing rooms. There's a full-length trifold mirror at the end of the hall with a little platform.</p><p>The lady stops at the nearest changing room to it and hangs the little whiteboard next to the door. "Can I have your name?" She asks.</p><p>"Rouge and Amy," she replies smoothly. "And what's yours?"</p><p>"Lohni," the lady says writing their names down.</p><p>"Thank you, Lohni," Rouge says giving her the hundred ring note.</p><p>"Gosh, no, thank <em>you</em>," Lohni breathes out. She stares at the bill like she can't believe it's real. "Stars."</p><p>Rouge simply gives her a self assured smile and heads back towards Amy. She's humming along to the music in the store when she bumps into someone.</p><p>"Oh my gosh," Rouge exclaims reaching out to steady them. "I'm so sorry!"</p><p>They laugh nervously, unable to meet her eyes, "Nah you're good. Don't worry about it."</p><p>They both part ways and Rouge fights a smirk as she examines the bracelet. The band is fairly plain, silver plated, but has a beautiful oblong marquis cut cairngorm gem. She slips the bracelet on and admires it with a smile as she reaches Amy and Shadow.</p><p>Shadow looks about as out of place as she expected and he doesn't seem to be too annoyed. If the twitch of his tail is anything to go by at least.</p><p>Amy, on the other hand, is holding a single shirt as she browses a clothing rack.</p><p>"Oh, come on," Rouge drawls startling Amy. "There's gotta be more you like."</p><p>"I mean, there is..." She says shifting the shirt in her hands nervously.</p><p>"But?" Rouge prompts raising an eyebrow.</p><p>"This stuff is <em>really</em> expensive."</p><p>Rouge's demeanour softens at how embarrassed Amy seems. "Hey, don't worry about it," she says placing her hands on Amy's slumped shoulders. "This is a thank you for bagging that guy for us. It got us a big bonus on our paychecks so I'm using some of that to pay you back."</p><p>"But-,"</p><p>Rouge holds up a hand to cut her off. "Nope, it's all on the house today."</p><p>Amy argues back, a more stubborn expression on her face. "I can't ask you to do that!"</p><p>"Well it's a good thing you're not asking," Rouge replies with a smirk.</p><p>"That's not-,"</p><p>"Don't bother," Shadow interrupts. "Once she gets an idea in her head, there's no stopping her."</p><p>"I still don't want you having to waste your money on me!"Amy argues.</p><p>Rouge frowns. "Honey, I'm not <em>wasting anything</em> spending it on you."</p><p>Amy looks like she wants to keep arguing but can't come up with a reply.</p><p>"Rouge," Shadow says. "How much did you set aside for this trip."</p><p>She raises an eyebrow at him. He knows <em>exactly</em> how much she deducted from all their bonuses. "About eight thousand."</p><p>"<em>Eight thousand?!</em>" Amy squeaks.</p><p>Turning his attention back to Amy, he says, "She's a big spender. I doubt you'll even reach a third of what she plans to spend for herself."</p><p>Amy looks between the two, still shocked and still a little unsure.</p><p>Rouge fights to keep the surprise off her face. She hadn't expected Shadow to reassure Amy. She chances a glance at him and notices his ears are slightly tilted to the sides. His <em>cautiously alert</em> look as she likes to call it.</p><p>"Okay, fine," Amy says finally giving in.</p><p>Rouge sees the moment he goes from <em>cautiously alert</em> to <em>pleased and relaxed</em>.</p><p>"Holy crap," slips out. She'd had her suspicions but <em>this</em>. It's just surreal.</p><p>"What?" Amy asks.</p><p>Rouge panics not wanting to give away her revelation and tries to look for something. She pointedly ignores Shadow's narrowed and suspicious look.</p><p>Instead, she reaches for a shirt on the rack behind Amy. "I just saw this and it would totally look cute on you!" She holds up the shirt hoping her words don't sound as fake as they feel.</p><p>Amy seems confused at the sudden change in topic but goes along with it. Bless this girl's heart.</p><p>She grabs the shirt with a smile. "I was actually looking at that one earlier."</p><p>"Well, go grab all the stuff that caught your eye!"</p><p>Amy smiles brightly as she turns and hurries towards a wall with many shirts on display.</p><p>Rouge tries not to jump when she feels Shadow walk behind her. "We're gonna have a word when this is over," he says quiet enough for only her to hear.</p><p>"It better be to say <em>thank you,</em>" Rouge shoots over her shoulder. His intimidation games don't work on her any more.</p><p>She pointedly holds her chin up as she follows Amy as she wanders away in her search for more clothes.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Listen. I really like the idea of Shadow being really expressive, but in subtle ways. </p><p>Like he was created/grew up in the ARK, mostly around humans. Sure he probably learned how to control facial expressions and body language by watching them. But he never learned to do it w/ his ears tails b/c they don't have them.<br/>Or at least, that's what I'm headcanoning haha</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This starts w/ a flashback and I swear I didn't mean for it to be like a third of this chapter I'm sorry</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Rouge rummages through the kitchen in search of her favorite mug. If she's going to spend the whole day writing the after action report, she's going to make sure she at least has her favorite mug with her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"A-ha!" She cheers.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Shadow makes a face as she pours herself some coffee. "I don't know how you can stand to drink that stuff."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"It's called not being a baby about it."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He simply rolls his eyes at her and grabs a glass of water. "Don't you have a report to be writing," he teases.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Ugh, don't remind me," she groans into her coffee. "Speaking of which, where's Omega? I need his video feed from the mission."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"He uploaded it to the GUN network this morning before leaving."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Okay, but where is he?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"On the Demo Field."</em>
</p><p><em>She pauses in confusion. "</em>Why<em>?"</em></p><p>
  <em>Shadow simply shrugs.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rouge sighs and pours herself some more coffee. At least if he breaks something there the higher ups won't get on her case about it. Though, it makes her wonder why exactly Omega would want to go to the Demolitions Field in the first place.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She pushes the thought from her head. She doesn't have time to wonder about that right now. She has an after action report to file.</em>
</p><p>--</p><p>
  <em>Rouge rubs her face for what feels like the millionth time. After a painful four hours, she's only seventeen pages in. She hasn't even gotten to the part where Tails and Sonic show up yet!</em>
</p><p><em>She honestly doesn't understand why GUN wants transcripts of their conversations during missions when she has to submit the audiologs themselves to begin with. She and her team have been faithul agents for </em>years<em>. One would think that by now the top brass would realize none of them plan to, or even want to, betray GUN.</em></p><p>
  <em>She's about to get back to work when her phone dings.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">There's takeout from that place you like in the frigdge</span> </em>
</p><p>
  <em>She smiles at the message. For as aloof and stoic as Shadow tries to act, he's a total sweetie at heart.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">thnx u da best xoxoxo &lt;3&lt;3&lt;3</span> </em>
</p><p>
  <em>She gets up and stretches; her back cracking in all the right places. She stretches her stiff wings and winces at the twinges of pain. Maybe she should take a short break to stretch.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But for now, she has some delicious food calling her name!</em>
</p><p>--</p><p>
  <em>Rouge takes another sip of her coffee and grimaces. It's gone cold. Well, the mug's almost empty, may as well finish it.</em>
</p><p>
  <span class="u">"Omega, be more careful around Amy Rose."</span>
</p><p>
  <em>Rouge just about spits her coffee. She holds it back and nearly chokes for her efforts.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>There's no way she heard that right. She rewinds the footage and sure enough:</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">"Omega, be more careful around Amy Rose</span><span class="u">.</span> <span class="u"> It's one thing if you accidentally hurt me and Rouge or even dumbass and the Kid. She's more civilian than them, and she doesn't actively work against us."</span> </em>
</p><p>
  <em>She pauses the video and tries to process it. The only reason she left Amy to greet Shadow and Omega was because Shadow had been in a bad mood after Sonic showed up. She'd been hoping Amy would take the brunt of it so she didn't have to deal with it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No, it was probably a fluke. She did tell them that Amy had something that would aid the mission. Maybe that was enough to calm him down.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Yeah. That has to be it. She chalks up her reaction to working too long.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She gets herself some fresh coffee before continuing on. Through all the technical writing, she just about forgets how surprising Shadow's words were.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She goes back to the window with Omega's mission feed and presses play.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She smiles at how bubbly Amy still manages to come across, even on video. The girl really is adorable. It's disarming really.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rouge wonders if that's how Amy managed to take Jax down. She'll have to scrub through the security footage she collected to be sure, though. Not something she looks forward to.</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">"You damn bitch! When I get–,"</span> </em>
</p><p>
  <em>She winces at how hard Shadow kicks him. That would certainly explains Jax's orbital socket fracture.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She'd been hoping that it had been Amy's doing. Now she's going to have to deal with a different report and an administration's reprimand for 'excessive use of force' and blah blah blah.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She sighs and rewinds the video to get the details right in the report. Shadow activated the thrusters on his shoe for the kick... Yeah, they're definitely going to have to deal with a reprimand.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She rewinds it one last time to get the time stamp and immediately notices something new. Shadow's ears are tilted back.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She blinks in surprise. He usually only tilts his ears back when he's angry after being insulted or one-uped.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She rewinds the video to when Omega first catches him on video. Shadow's ears are tilted back, and he looks more keyed up than when he kicked Jax. So she was right. He was in a mood.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She watches the video again but focuses solely on Shadow. He seems to calm down as Amy shows off the prisoner. Heck, he seems to no longer even be angry!</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">"You damn bitch! When I get–,"</span> </em>
</p><p><em>"Whoa," Rouge says to herself. Shadow had reacted like </em>he'd<em> been the one insulted. But that doesn't make sense. Those insults had been clearly directed at Amy.</em></p><p>
  <em>She grabs her headset and contacts Omega. "Hey, Omega, are you able to stop what you're doing to help me out for a moment."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She doesn't wait long for his reply. "Affirmative," he says. "I will be at your location in approximately three minutes."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No, it's alright you don't need to come here," she tells him. "I just need you to analyze certain parts of the footage you gave me."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Understood."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She gives him the time stamp for when Shadow first got to the scene and when he kicked Jax. "I want you to analyze Shadow," she instructs. "Tell me everything you find that deviates from his usual norm."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She expects a near instant reply, instead she's made to wait for almost a full twenty seconds. Omega is a sophisticated machine and he's been upgraded a few times too. His analyses are generally instantaneous unless there's a lot of information to take in.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"First time stamp: Shadow the hedgehog displays improved posture and a wider stance. Aggression decreased notably. His attention was primarily on Amy Rose despite the target being in the vicinity."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Second time stamp: Shadow's aggression spiked momentarily and he expanded his quills to show a larger profile. Behavior consistent with hedgehog race of Mobians as a way to show aggression."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No way.</em>
</p><p><em>Shadow was posturing! Actually </em>posturing<em>! And for Amy Rose of all people!</em></p><p>
  <em>She can't help but laugh. Amy's such a ray of sunshine, the complete opposite of Shadow. "Omega," she snorts. "Do you think Shadow has feelings for Amy Rose?"</em>
</p><p><em>"I do not understand the question; </em>feelings<em> is too broad."</em></p><p>
  <em>Rouge rolls her eyes. She always forgets how specific and technical she has to be when asking Omega anything about emotions. "Based on your analysis, is there a high probability of Shadow having a romantic or sexual interest in Amy Rose?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She grimaces at the question. It sounds so gross phrased like that.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Affirmative," Omega replies immediately.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Well okay. Shadow the sulky and moody hedgehog has a crush. A crush so obvious that even Omega noticed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She just can't believe it's on Amy Rose. A bubbly, extroverted, ray of sunshine.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rouge is going to have to test it out, though. She just can't see it. Amy is like Shadow's exact opposite.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>That means she's going to have to come up with a plan to get them in the same place. The shopping trip she briefly thought about might work. She uses Shadow to carry her bags often enough that she can use that as believable cover.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rouge decides to leave the rest of the report for tomorrow. She already spent all day on it, and she definitely won't be able to work on it properly now that she's got a plan brewing.</em>
</p><p>--</p><p>"...–uge? Rouge!"</p><p>Rouge doesn't startle, but she does look up a little too sharply.</p><p>Amy's staring down at her, hands on her hips. She's frowning but the worry is clear on her face.</p><p>"Sorry, hun. What were you saying?"</p><p>"I said it's your turn," Amy replies. "Are you okay?"</p><p>She smiles reassuringly. "Just spaced out a little," she says, "But why the sudden break? You've only tried on, like, five of the outfits you've chosen."</p><p>Amy reaches up to brush her quills but stops short. "My back and head are starting to hurt," she explains.</p><p>Rouge frowns in confusion. "Okay?" Taking some pain relievers would fix that right up.</p><p>Amy, bless her soul, doesn't seem bothered by Rouge's confusion. "I'm not used to changing clothes so often, so everytime I try on a new shirt, it tugs on my quills and irritates my skin."</p><p>Ouch. Rouge never would've guessed that was something hedgehogs had to deal with. No wonder Amy hadn't wanted to try on that many things. "We don't have to keep trying on clothes if you don't want to," she offers.</p><p>"No! No!" Amy's quick to refute. "I like trying on a bunch of new outfits! And you were right, sometimes you don't know what's actually good until you try it out."</p><p>Rouge purses her lips as she offers her seat to Amy. She starts digging through her purse. "I think I have a hair tie in here somewhere."</p><p>"It's okay," Amy says. "I just need a little break."</p><p>"Take your time," Rouge tells her.</p><p>She switches Amy's pile of clothes for her own and starts changing. She's barely gotten a pair of shorts on when she hears Amy's surprised, but excited, gasp.</p><p>"You have clasps?!"</p><p>Rouge sneaks over to where the curtain divider meets the wall and peaks through. She's careful to stay quiet and mostly hidden behind the wall.</p><p>Shadow's holding out a dark silver metallic ring towards Amy.</p><p>It's about the size of a scrunchy but that's about it. It looks more like a bracelet than a hair tie to Rouge.</p><p>"I've learned the hard way to always have a few on me at all times," Shadow says.</p><p>Amy smiles and takes the metal scrunchy– <em>clasp</em>– from Shadow. "Thanks!" She winces as she starts maneuvering her quills into a high ponytail.</p><p>"Stop, you'll want to do something flatter than that," Shadow says before she can get too far.</p><p>Amy slowly lowers her quills with another grimace. Rouge hadn't really put much thought into how long Amy's quills had gotten; they're a little past her shoulders. Amy tries again and starts trying to braid her quills.</p><p>Shadow glances towards the changing room and Rouge quickly ducks behind the wall. She waits and listens to see if she was spotted.</p><p>"Just let me," he grumbles.</p><p>Rouge is instantly peaking through the curtain again.</p><p>Amy's looking at him apprehensively. His tail twitches impatiently and his grumble is a tad less friendly this time. "We're both hedgehogs, it's not like I'm going to yank out your quills."</p><p>"Sonic's a hedgehog too and he accidentally pulled out like five once when he was helping me get twigs out of them," Amy replies.</p><p>"You really think I'm going to be as bumbling of a fool as him?" Shadow asks, looking about as offended as he sounds.</p><p>To Rouge's surprise, Amy laughs. "I guess you do tend to be more careful about things," she concedes handing him back the clasp.</p><p>Shadow mirrors her surprise as Amy turns to let him touch her quills. He reaches out slowly and hesitates. Rouge can see the nervous twitch of his tail as he continues on like nothing.</p><p>After a few seconds of sitting there, Amy glances towards the changing room. "Rouge? Are you doing alright in there?" She calls out.</p><p>Rouge jumps, having been completely absorbed in the scene in front of her. "I'm fine, honey!" She replies scrambling over to her pile of clothes. "This shirt's just a little tighter than I was expecting." She rifles through the clothes in search for the smallest one.</p><p>"Do you need any help?" Amy asks.</p><p>"No!" She says a little too quickly and tries to play it off. "No, it's alright. I've nearly got it."</p><p>She grabs a dark green crop top and pulls it on as quickly as she can. Well, it's definitely <em>tight</em>. She manages to adjust the shirt to her wings without much trouble but struggles with one of the sleeves. As she tries to push her arm through, she hears the seams stretch... Okay. Looks like she's getting that shirt regardless.</p><p>"A-ha!" She cheers finally getting her arm through.</p><p>She surveys herself using the mirror in the dressing room. It's not even that cute looking on her.</p><p>"Well?" Amy asks. "Aren't you gonna show us?"</p><p>Rouge pushes the curtain divider aside with flair. Even if the shirt doesn't look as good as she'd hoped, she can still try to make it work.</p><p>She's instantly distracted by the state of Amy's quills. She recognizes that hair– er quill?–style. It's the same one Shadow uses when he works on Omega or his bike. Something about keeping his quills from getting caught in the machinery, he'd told her once.</p><p>"Oh, that's a cute top!" Amy comments.</p><p>Rouge, in an attempt to pretend like she wasn't just staring, does a small twirl to show it off. Looking in the trifold mirror, she can see just how glued onto her it is. "Okay, maybe I <em>will</em> need some help taking it off." She frowns.</p><p>As Amy gets closer to help her, Shadow mutters under his breath. "I know you were eavesdropping."</p><p>Rouge doesn't even bother glancing at him as she returns to the dressing room. She makes sure Amy's not paying attention when she makes a fist only to cross two of her fingers. <em>Together</em>.</p><p>She holds back her laughter as Shadow tries not to sputter.</p><p>"You look happy," Amy comments pulling the curtain in place.</p><p>"Oh, it's just so fun having you around," she admits. Though half that reason is because of all the new things she can tease Shadow about now. "And I never realized how fun it would be to shop with someone else! Shadow can be so <em>boring</em> when it comes to shopping."</p><p>"I bet," Amy laughs. "He doesn't really seem like the type to go shopping."</p><p>They continue talking idly as Amy helps her get out of the shirt without ripping it. She even waits until Rouge has put on a new shirt before exiting the changing room.</p><p>Rouge finds Amy's level of modesty adorable. She even went so far as to face a wall as Rouge put on a new shirt!</p><p>Amy seems just as excited seeing every new outfit Rouge tries on. And she seems genuine about it too. It makes Rouge feel guilty for basically using the girl. Both back during the mission and even right now.</p><p>Rouge shakes her head. No. That's <em>not</em> what she'd doing.</p><p>She's paying Amy back for her help. She's confirming a suspicion that would otherwise never be confirmed. She's trying to at least make those two friends.</p><p>After many more outfits, she spots Shadow starting to nod off. Not unusual for him during a shopping trip, but he's leaning against a wall as opposed to sitting somewhere.</p><p>She should probably switch with Amy and keep him awake. Save him from embarrassing himself when he inevitably tips over.</p><p>She quickly puts her own clothes back on and opens the curtain with another flourish. "So, Amy. Ready for round two?"</p><p>Amy's on her feet in an instant. "You bet!" She replies looking determined.</p><p>Rouge is quick to trade places with Amy. Sure, she could give up the bench to Shadow, but then he'd fall asleep for sure, and where's the fun in that?</p><p>She finds that she eventually stops watching for Shadow's reactions and starts enjoying Amy's company more. The only indication she gets of the passage of time is the shifting pile of clothes she spots in the dressing room.</p><p>"You know I'm going to kill you after this, right?" Shadow says during one of Amy's longer changing moments.</p><p>Rouge laughs, "With gratitude maybe," she smirks.</p><p>Amy's wearing her romper again when she comes back out. She's got two, careful balanced, piles of clothes in her arms and a self assured smile. "I think I'm all good!"</p><p>Rouge smiles and jumps to her feet. "Perfect! Let's go pay for all this stuff."</p><p>Rouge makes sure to give Lohni an extra hundred rings as they leave the changing area. After all, that poor bird's going to be the one to sort and return their rejected clothes to their spots.</p><p>Amy tries and fails to peak at the price while the cashier rings up their clothes. Rouge shifts to block the view each time; not letting Amy know she's doing it on purpose.</p><p>Rouge makes sure the cashier noted Lohni as the sales associate responsible for their huge purchase. She even waves to the tall bird as they leave.</p><p>They're barely a few steps out of the store when Amy exuses herself to the bathroom.</p><p>She waits with Shadow, unable to keep the smugness out of her voice. "You're uncharacteristically quiet."</p><p>"I <em>will</em> leave your bags somewhere," he threatens in response.</p><p>She rolls her eyes. "Will it kill you to admit you're enjoying Amy's company?"</p><p>Shadow meets her gaze. "You paraded Rose in front of me like a dress-up doll," he says drily.</p><p>Rouge winces. Shit. Had she really just been objectifying Amy this whole time?</p><p>She breaks her plan down to its bare basics and frowns. Shadow's right. That <em>was</em> what she was doing. And Amy was none the wiser.</p><p>Chaos, she is the worst.</p><p>With no way to refuting him, she breaks eye contact. The silence feels stifling to her as they wait. She's glad when Amy walks out a few short moments later.</p><p>"Tada!" Amy announces striking a pose.</p><p>It's an outfit Rouge hadn't seen her try out. A button front corduroy mini-skirt and a lose mustard yellow crop top.</p><p>"So," Amy prompts walking up to them. "Where to next?"</p><p>Rouge had originally planned on at least two more clothing shops, but after Shadow's comment... She doesn't feel right taking Amy to try on more clothes. "How 'bout some shoes?" She suggests.</p><p>--</p><p>Rouge frowns as she watches Amy set down another pair of shoes without trying them on. It's the fifth pair she's done that with! "Come on, those are totally your style!"</p><p>Amy nearly drops the next pair of shoes she'd picked up. "What?"</p><p>"Those white booties! They're totally your thing."</p><p>"I know, and I really want them, too."</p><p>"Then <em>get them</em>!" Rouge urges. "I'm paying after all."</p><p>Amy grabs one of the shoes and removes one of the ones she's wearing. "The sole's too weak," She turns them so the soles are facing Rouge.</p><p>Rouge takes Amy's shoe and turns it in her hands. She hadn't noticed it before. She's not sure if it's an extra sole of if a completely different one, but it makes the shoe look weird now that she's paying attention. "What is this?"</p><p>"I don't actually know," she shrugs. "Tails modifies my shoes so I don't wear them out in a week."</p><p>"The kid?" Rouge asks raising an eyebrow.</p><p>"Yeah, he does Sonic's shoes too."</p><p>"Is that why you two always wear the same three pairs of shoes?"</p><p>Amy winces. "Yeah, there's not a lot of choice."</p><p>An idea strikes Rouge. "You wouldn't happen to also know of some durable jackets would you?" She asks slyly. "For say, I dunno, a certain moody hedgehog?"</p><p>Amy raises an eyebrow. She looks from Rouge to Shadow who's glaring down at his phone as he waits for them outside the store. "For Shadow? Really?"</p><p>"Oh, come on, Amy," Rouge wines rolling her eyes. "The jacket he's wearing is falling apart. Don't tell me you didn't see it."</p><p>Amy purses her lips as she thinks. "I think I might know where," she eventually decides. "If Station Square has a store, there's <em>no way</em> this mall doesn't either."</p><p>"Great!" Rouge jumps to her feet and hand Amy her shoe back. "Lemme just buy this pair real quick and we'll go."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'M SO SICK OF THIS MALL I WANNA GO HHOOOMMMEE</p><p>In all seriousness, there should only be one more mall chapter, so don't worry</p><p>Also, Shadow misspelling "fridge" was a legit typo on my end, but I decided to leave it b/c I thought it was funny</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Good fucking god I am so sorry for the long wait. </p><p>I got stuck and ended up forgetting abt this for like two and a half months while I worked on some other stuff. And like usually I'm better at strong-arming my way through writer's block but I fucking guess not this time ¯\_(ツ)_/¯</p><p>Also can I just say how fucken weird it is to write abt GUN atm???</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Rouge pretends not to notice Shadow's suspicious glare as she and Amy exit the small store with only a single shoe box. She absently hands Shadow the box as she follows Amy.</p><p>Amy stops in front of one of those mall maps and starts scanning the long list of stores. Rouge tries to be patient, but when Amy starts going through the list for a third time, her patience starts to wear down. "Why don't we just–,"</p><p>"Found it!" Amy exclaims. She quickly switches her attention to the actual map and quickly scans the floor. Once she finds what she's looking for, she turns away from the map with a very determined look on her face</p><p>Shadow gives Rouge a questioning look. She shrugs, pretending not to know anything.</p><p>They follow Amy as she makes her way to the escalator. It's fairly full so they're stuck standing around as the escalator slowly makes its way up.</p><p>Rouge is about to pull out her phone when she notices Shadow suddenly look towards the receding floor. confused, and alert, Rouge quickly scans the floor below them. Finding nothing, she looks around in confusion.</p><p>They reach the top and Amy steps off the escalator, and that's when Rouge sees it. From where she's standing, and certainly from where Shadow's standing, she can see up Amy's shirt and have full view of her bra.</p><p>She holds back a snort, but ultimately thinks it's sweet seeing Shadow look away. She won't even tease him about it.</p><p>Amy's bouncing on the balls of her feet as she stops in front of a a store. "Tada!" She says with the exact same exaggerated flourish as when she had presented her prisoner to them.</p><p>Rouge would find that amusing, if a bit unsettling, if she hadn't been distracted by the store. It's like a gunge take on motorcycle fashion; all super serious and really macho.</p><p>"How do you even know this place?" She asks skeptically.</p><p>"My neighbor works for the company and sometimes gives me clothes to test out," she says proudly. "And now I get most of Knuckles' gifts from here."</p><p>Rouge can't piece together how testing out the clothes and Knuckles tie in together. "How do you even..." She trails off as she watches Shadow walk into the store.</p><p>Amy's smile excitedly. She seems proud that Shadow likes the store she picked out. "Come on!" She motions to Rouge as she darts inside too.</p><p>Rouge continues to eye the place as she follows suit. How had she never come across this place herself? She'd searched for hours to find Shadow a fitting jacket.</p><p>Shadow blends into the crowd of the store well, but she and Amy stick out like sore thumbs.</p><p>"Are those honest-to-Gaia <em>cloaks</em>?" She asks coming up behind Amy.</p><p>Amy glances back at her and pulls one off the rack. "Yep! They're meant for cold and windy places like Holoska," she turns it over in her hands, examining it closer. "But they work just as good in the desert!"</p><p>Rouge raises an eyebrow. She can't imagine Amy wearing it or purposefully going into a desert. "How'd you figure that out?"</p><p>"I got one for Knuckles' birthday a few years ago since Angel Island can get really cold and windy," she explains. "But he uses it almost exclusively to treasure hunt in the desert."</p><p>Intrigued, Rouge grabs one from the rack. It's fairly light weight and feels like a strange mix of canvas and something else. Definitely something that can buffer sand and ice easily.</p><p>Checking the tag, she feels her jaw drop. <em>Fifteen hundred?! </em></p><p>Amy laughs at her reaction. "I know, I know. But I promise they're good!" She shows one of the tags to Rouge. "They're even A-A!"</p><p>"<em>A-A</em>," Rouge can't help repeat drily.</p><p>"Amy Approved!"</p><p>She narrows her eyes in confusion for a moment before it suddenly clicks. "Wait, so when you said you tested the clothes..."</p><p>"Yep! I wear them for a month to see how they hold up!" She says brightly. "I bet I can tell you the exact jacket Shadow'll choose, actually."</p><p>Rouge, having gotten wrapped up in the clothes and store, nearly forgot about Shadow. She looks around for him and spots him looking at all the motorcycle jackets. "Which one is he gonna get then?"</p><p>Amy points to one of the pictures on a wall near Shadow. "So the R-series Adventure styled jacket is actually the best for what we do," she shifts to point at another picture on the opposite end of the wall. "But with the jacket he's got on, he'll probably go for the R-series Street styled jacket."</p><p>Rouge continues to watch Shadow as a sales associate approaches him. "What's the difference?"</p><p>"First one has more padding and will save you from more road rashes, but they're both made for speed."</p><p>Rouge hums as a sales associate, completely unfazed by Shadow's ever present scowl, starts talking to him. She and Amy make their way over just as Shadow dismisses the help.</p><p>"Here, hold your crap," Shadow says holding the shopping bags in Rouge's direction.</p><p>Rouge rolls her eyes but grabs the bags anyways. She almost drops them not realizing how heavy they are. Amy grabs the bags from her hands with ease. She can't help feel a little jealous of how Amy can easily hold all those extra bags. It makes her wonder just how strong Amy really is.</p><p>They watch idly as Shadow starts rummaging through some of the jackets. He starts off with the first one Amy had pointed out. After examining it for a little, he puts it back.</p><p>Rouge purposefully doesn't say anything as Shadow continues down the line of jackets. She's curious as to whether Amy's right in her prediction or not.</p><p>Eventually, Shadow makes his way to the other end of the jackets. His ears twitch in interest as he examines it.</p><p>He removes his jacket and tries that one on. He moves his arm around, no doubt testing it's mobility.</p><p>Rouge can see the satisfaction on his face as he takes it off. There's no doubt he's getting that one.</p><p>He doesn't waste time taking it to the register to purchase it.</p><p>"I knew it!" Amy chimes happily.</p><p>Rouge shakes her head in disbelief, but smiles regardless. She can't believe Shadow didn't need to be goaded into buying anything. Usually it takes her an hour of consistent prodding for him to even <em>consider</em> getting anything. Amy just had to show him a store.</p><p>As Shadow takes his purchase and heads towards the entrance, Amy starts bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Come on," she tells Rouge excitedly. "I saw a swim suit shop a couple stores down and they had the cutest stuff!"</p><p>Rouge can't help smiling. Amy's enthusiasm is just so infectious. She laments not having actively befriended her before now. They could have been having so much fun.</p><p>It isn't until they actually make it to the store that both she and Shadow realize Amy had been holding all the bags. She asks Shadow if he can watch their stuff since he'd refused to enter the store with them.</p><p>"Weren't those bags heavy?" Rouge asks.</p><p>"Not really," Amy shrugs. "My big hammer's <em>way</em> heavier."</p><p>Rouge can only look at her in surprise. Just how strong is Amy?</p><p>--</p><p>Rouge takes advantage of their time there to get Shadow a new pair of swim trunks. They're both overdue for a beach vacation. Maybe she can invite Amy and Sonic's group too.</p><p>After they get their swim suits, Rouge takes Amy to a dress shop. Though, they get distracted by another clothing store on the way.</p><p>By the time they actually make it to the dress shop, Shadow's quick to set the amassing bags down.</p><p>She checks the time; maybe they should take a break soon.</p><p>Oh shoot! She didn't realize how late it had gotten!</p><p>She tries not to be obvious as she hurries Amy along. Amy doesn't seem to notice, but Shadow gives her a strange look.</p><p>"Why don't we take a break?" She asks as they exit the store? "There's this really nice café up the street."</p><p>"Sure!" Amy agrees easily. "What do you say, Shadow?"</p><p>"I don't like coffee," he replies drily.</p><p>Amy seems surprised by this. Rouge, though, just rolls her eyes. "They have sodas too, you stick in the mud."</p><p>Shadow rolls his eyes back at her.</p><p>"Perfect! This way!" She says leading them out of the mall.</p><p>After two blocks, the foot traffic slows considerably. Amy's still chattering happily with both of them. She doesn't seem bothered by Shadow's overall lack of replies.</p><p>Rouge is so engrossed in the conversation, she nearly leads them past the café. "Wait, we're here!"</p><p>Amy gasps, eyes growing wide. Even Shadow's ears twitch in interest.</p><p>"A <em>chao</em> café?!" Amy says excitedly.</p><p>"Well of course," Rouge says opening the door. "After you." </p><p>Amy giggles excitedly as she hurries inside. Even Shadow looks to have more energy as he follows close behind.</p><p>"Welcome!" The barista greets from behind the counter. "How are you guys doing today?"</p><p>Amy's quick to greet and make small talk with the barista. Rouge looks around as they make their way to the counter. There's only two other people in the place. A girl in the corner on a computer and a guy on his phone at one of the window counters. They both have a chao napping by them.</p><p>"So what can I get for you guys?"</p><p>"Can I get a medium cappuccino with coconut milk and a pump of vanilla?" Amy asks.</p><p>"I'll just have a water," Shadow says.</p><p>"Bottled or tap?" The barista asks.</p><p>"Tap's fine," he replies offhandedly as a chao wanders over to him.</p><p>Amy coos at the little thing as Shadow watches it get closer.</p><p>"And for you, ma'am?"</p><p>Rouge turns back to the girl with a smile. "Just a dark roast coffee, medium."</p><p>She hears Amy make a disgusted noise. "No wonder you don't like coffee," she whispers to Shadow.</p><p>"Anything else?"</p><p>Rouge is about to pay when Amy's suddenly at her side again. "Can you add a medium mocha with an extra pump of chocolate to that?"</p><p>"Sure! The drinks will be up in a sec!"</p><p>It took her a moment to realize Amy had also paid for their drinks. She's so used to Shadow's brand of speed, she forgets that Amy's also really fast.</p><p>"It's only fair," Amy smiles when Rouge gives her a look.</p><p>"Suit yourself then," Rouge says.</p><p>As they make their way over to one of the booths, Rouge notices the chao has climbed onto Shadow's shoulder. She smiles at how pleased he looks. The chao smiles back at her, showing off it's serrated teeth.</p><p>Rouge blinks in surprise. She doesn't think she's ever seen a non-dark chao with serrated teeth before.</p><p>Shadow sets all the bags down on the seat and pushes them as close to the wall as he can to make room for himself. Amy does the same with her bags, but has to pass some to Shadow's side to make room for Rouge as well.</p><p>Rouge sits down with a relieved sigh. "Ah, it feels good to finally sit down." She purposely ignores Shadow's eye roll.</p><p>"Thanks for the shopping trip, Rouge," Amy says with a sincere smile.</p><p>Rouge is taken off guard by how sincere Amy sounds. Thankfully, the barista saves her from having to come up with a reply. "Alright, here you guys are!" She says holding a small tray with all their drinks.</p><p>"You didn't have to do that for us, sweetie," Rouge says. "We could have gotten them ourselves."</p><p>"I don't mind," the barista waves her off. "It's so dead I gotta find a way to do <em>something</em>."</p><p>"Why <em>is</em> it so empty?" Amy asks. "Chao cafés are usually always busy!"</p><p>"There's some emergency construction going on up the street," she explains. "I think it's a burst pipe or something. But they have to redirect, like, <em>all</em> the foot traffic."</p><p>"Wow, I hope the water damage isn't too bad," Amy replies.</p><p>"Right!" The bell over the door rings drawing the barista's attention away. "Enjoy your drinks, guys!"</p><p>Rouge idly watches as the newcomer makes his way over to the counter.</p><p>"Wow, I guess we were lucky with the route we took to get here," Amy comments.</p><p>"Yeah," Shadow replies drily. "Almost conveniently lucky."</p><p>Turning back to them, she finds Shadow giving her a hard look. It would almost be intimidating if it weren't for the chao on his lap. "Why are you looking at <em>me</em>?" She asks coyly.</p><p>"What did you do?" He demands.</p><p>"I didn't do anything," she sniffs</p><p>"I'm sure it's just a coincidence," Amy suggests.</p><p>"Not with Rouge it's not."</p><p>Rouge– pretending to have given up after a long argument– raises her hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, you caught me," she replies with a put upon sigh. She points to one of the windows by the door, and lowers her voice slightly, "That building's being raided as we speak, and I'm on standby in case something goes wrong."</p><p>Shadow's quick to glance out the window before glaring at her. "<em>Rouge</em>," he growls. "If you seriously-,"</p><p>"Don't get so worked up," she interrupts with a dismissive eye roll. "That guy by the window's one of ours– I can hear his com from here. He's on civilian protection duty."</p><p>"That's not the point!" He shoots back. "You can't just–,"</p><p>"Um," Amy interrupts. "Why is that building being raided?"</p><p>"I'm so glad you asked!" Rouge says happily. "Remember that guy you bagged for us in that Eggman base? The bison guy? Well, he's been under investigation for years in connection to black market weapons, and now that he's in our custody we finally have the evidence for a warrant!"</p><p>Surprised, Amy leans around her to get a better look at the building. "<em>Wilder Hotel</em>," she reads. "Why would you need to raid a <em>hotel</em>?"</p><p>"Central City's a big place."</p><p>"Okay?"</p><p>"Central City's the main distribution center of black arms in the region," Shadow explains irritably. "Having captured Jax Wilder in an Eggman base; it's likely he was the head of operations here."</p><p>"Wow. No wonder he put up a fight," Amy comments idly taking a sip from her drink. "Oh, that's right!" She says suddenly. "Rouge! You still need to apologize to Tails and Sonic!"</p><p>"<em>Excuse </em><em>me</em>!?" Rouge says sounding insulted. "For <em>what</em>?!"</p><p>"Okay, so you know how you <em>threw</em> Tails at one of the <em>turrets</em>?"</p><p>"You did <em>what</em>?!" Shadow cuts in. Rouge winces.</p><p>"Well, you dislocated his ankle in the process," Amy continues, "and thanks to that, one of the badniks got a lucky shot on him."</p><p>Rouge's wince turns into a full blown grimace. Logically she knew Tails getting hurt was a possibility, but she just didn't think it would actually happen. He and Sonic are virtually untouchable. Who could blame her for that oversight.</p><p>Amy's sipping her drink calmly as she waits for Rouge to respond. Something about it unsettles her.</p><p>As Rouge tries to come up with something to say, Shadow says, "No wonder Sonic was more of a dick than usual when we ran into him."</p><p>"His little brother got hurt!" Amy retorts defensively. "Of course he's gonna be angry about it!"</p><p>That's when it hits Rouge. Amy's probably mad too. She's just trying to hide it because they're hanging out as friends for like the first time.</p><p>"Amy, sweetie," she starts hesitantly. "You have to know I never meant for him to get hurt."</p><p>Amy's shoulders seem to loosen, but she still doesn't look completely convinced.</p><p>"I promise I'll talk to them," she continues, "and I'm sorry I hurt your friend."</p><p>Amy smiles at her, clearly satisfied with the apology, and nods. "I'll hold you to that," she promises before turning on Shadow. "Now, Shadow."</p><p>Shadow's ears quickly fold back defensively. His entire posture turns defensive.</p><p>Amy places one of her coffee cups in front of him. "Try this."</p><p>Shadow makes a face.</p><p>"Come on!" She urges. "I promise it's not gross like Rouge's." Amy seems to realize what she just said and winces. "Sorry, Rouge."</p><p>Rouge laughs and waves her off. "It's not like he doesn't tell me that all the time."</p><p>The chao reaches for the cup, and Shadow pulls its hands away from it. "No, it's hot," he chides gently.</p><p>"Come on, Shadow!" Amy pleades. "Just a sip! What do you have to lose?"</p><p>"My taste buds," he replies drily.</p><p>Rouge rolls her eyes. "Don't be such a baby, Shadow."</p><p>"How about this: I carry all the bags if you don't like it," Amy proposes.</p><p>"Wha– Amy!" Rouge starts just as Shadow says:</p><p>"Deal."</p><p>Shadow takes the drink and gives it a suspicious sniff. Satisfied that it's not going to poison him, he takes a tentative sip. His ears perk up in interest.</p><p>He sets the drink down with a muttered, "Damn."</p><p>"So?" Amy prompts with and excited grin.</p><p>"It's good," he begrudgingly grumbles taking another sip.</p><p>Rouge's jaw drops in surprise. How in the <em>world</em>?! She had spent almost an entire year trying to get him to drink coffee once. Yet, somehow, Amy manages it in one afternoon!</p><p>"You're gonna catch flies like that," Shadow says drily.</p><p>Rouge snaps her mouth shut as Amy tries to stifle her laughter. She instantly turns on Amy. "Explain," she demands. "How'd you get him to drink it!"</p><p>Amy smiles nervously. She glances at Shadow– who's busy downing the drink– before quickly looking back at her. "He drank most of the hot chocolate at the Christmas party," she says. "I figured if he liked hot chocolate he'd like mocha coffee."</p><p>Rouge opens her mouth to respond but quickly closes it. Now that she thinks about, Shadow does like chocolate a lot. Heck, even she buys him chocolates when she goes out for snacks. "Huh," is all she can think to say.</p><p>A sly grin spreads across her face as she leans into Amy's space. "How come you pay so much attention to what he likes?" She asks. In a terrible stage whisper she then asks. "Is there something you want to tell us, Amy?"</p><p>Shadow chokes on his drink and desperately tries to cover it up.</p><p>Amy tilts her head in confusion. "What do you mean?" She asks.</p><p>"Yeah," Shadow growls, "<em>what do you mean, Rouge?</em>"</p><p>"Oh, never mind," Rouge sighs. "Why don't we get something to eat, instead? I saw a menu at the counter."</p><p>They're halfway through their food when Rouge catches sound of police sirens in the distance. It takes a few more seconds before Shadow and Amy notice them.</p><p>A hoard of squad cars and armored Gun Trucks pull up between the hotel and café.</p><p>"Whoa," the girl with the laptop comments.</p><p>The barista's heading to the doors almost immediately. She's stopped by the man who was at the counter. They exchange some words, but Rouge isn't paying enough attention to catch what they're saying.</p><p>She's content watching everything unfold. Shadow's made a point to ignore everything going on while Amy watches with interest. Amy asks her some questions here and there which Rouge is happy to answer.</p><p>She thinks, over all, that this outing has been a success. She's confident in her assessment of both Shadow and Amy's feelings for each other. Shadow's got a stupidly obvious crush while Amy still only sees him as a friendly acquaintance.</p><p>If Rouge is to set them up, she's going to have to work on that. Though, she too will have to move up from friendly acquaintance to friend.</p><p>Rouge wipes her mouth to hide her quickly forming smirk. It shouldn't be too hard to make Amy fall for Shadow.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>
  <strike> So going back to double-check things, I realized Sonic was a little too angry/harsh/aggressive in chap one so having Rouge accidently hurt Tails is how I justified it... w/ a completely outa left field convo lmao </strike>
</p><p> </p><p>  <strike><br/><span class="small">is it obvious I'm waffling w/ this fic?</span><br/></strike></p>
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